TomSwirly t1_ixyg485 wrote on November 27, 2022 at 10:32 AM

Reply to comment by NinjaFenrir77 in Space Elevators Are Less Sci-Fi Than You Think by Sorin61

> The chances of this happening are relatively small,

Can we see the math?

> and the damage being much less impactful than the impact of having an operational space elevator.

Having a 35,000km structure collapse onto the Earth sounds pretty darn "impactful".

NinjaFenrir77 t1_ixyib4o wrote on November 27, 2022 at 11:04 AM

There’s not a lot of math to show until we start talking specifics of the elevator and know the materials we are working with. In general, space is pretty empty.

Are you taking about the orbiting station? Because that won’t crash into Earth, it will fly away (slowly) because it is orbiting faster than it should to have a stable orbit in order to balance out the elevator cable. A few thrusters can help it stay in a stable orbit if the cable breaks.

The cable itself isn’t a huge threat. It could potentially kill some people if it landed on them, but the scenario of it whipping into the Earth at supersonic speeds isn’t going to happen due to wind resistance and basic safety precautions.

Harabeck t1_ixz6vua wrote on November 27, 2022 at 3:20 PM

> Having a 35,000km structure collapse onto the Earth sounds pretty darn "impactful".

I might damage your roof, and it'd be a huge pain in the ass, but it's not like it'd be a tower that crushes everything beneath it.

TheImmortalLS t1_ixz9z4v wrote on November 27, 2022 at 3:44 PM

It’s the same probability as ISS getting hit, +/- a bit since the iss can go up and down. Maybe a space elevator can dodge a bit too.